MAR 27 1958
L IERA RA
A CONMUNITY CENTER FOR ICHIKAWA
Submitted in partial fulfillment
of the requirements for the degree
of Master in Architecture at The
Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
August
6,
1957
Naibu Akashi
Herbert L. Beckwith
August
6,
1957Dean Pietro Belluschi
School of Architecture and Planning Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Cambridge, Massachusetts Dear Dean Belluschi:
In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master in Architecture, I submit the following thesis entitled "A Community Center for Ichikawa."
Sincerely yours,
To Dean Pietro Belluschi for his inspiration and warm-hearted support of my efforts.
To my father, for his patience, encouragement, and help
Page
INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND
Historical 1
Western European Influence 2
Movement toward Environs
3
TOWN PLANNING IN JAPAN
General Statement
4
Street Traffic
6
Parks
7
Water Supply 8
Sewerage 9
Development of Government Office Center 9
Zoning 10
Fire-Proof Belt 12
War-Damage Reconstruction Works 12
Urban Disasters 13
Land Replotting 13
Improvement of Greater National Capital
District l4
Large Scale Development of Building Lots 15 THE HOUSING ACT IN JAPAN
Housing Situation 15
Public-Operated Housing 18
HLC Housing 24
TABLE OF CONTENTS (Cont'd)
Page
Housing Built by Japan Housing
Corporation 26
Development of Building Sites by the
Housing Corporation 28
ICHIKAWA, CHIBA 30
Climate 30
Rainfall and Wind 30
Population 32 Economy 32 Education 35 Conmunity Facilities 36 Religion
37
Traffic 37COMMUNITY PLAN FOR MIYAKUBO, ICHIKAWA 39
The Site 39
Topography
4o
Organization of the Plan 40
Residential Density and Scale 41 Structure of the Comunity Unit 42 Other Recreational Grounds 43
The Neighborhood 43
The Comunity 43
Circulation 44
Residential Program 44
Community Facilities 46
Page
DESIGN PROGRAM 51
Community Building 51
Auditorium 52
Administration 53
District Ward Office 53
Fire Station 53
Shopping Area Center 54
DESIGN ANALYSIS 55
Plot Plan 55
Building Plan 55
1. The Auditorium 55
2. The Community Building 56
3. The Group of Shops 56
Structure, Elevation and Material 57
GOAL 58
I. INTRODUCTION
As a bubble suddenly appears in the rain and as quickly vanishes away, so people are born and leave this world. Short and fleeting is their life, but until the moment that it passes away, they must find living space, whether rich or poor. In big cities the countless roofs that meet our gaze and the myriads of bright lights at night represent the endless
se-quence of labor and recreation as humanity spends its allotted ,time. Day after day, year after year, dissatisfied with the existing conditions, man-kind is seeking better ways of living.
Our ancestors emerged from caves to build shelters in trees; log cabins over water and on the ground. The first living spaces came into existence, although the history of collective life extends much farther back. As the wisdom of the people grew and conformity to public morals and customs
in-creased, the community became more and more orderly. However, the Orient and the Occident went their separate ways for thousands of years and created their own unique mode of life without an interchange of civilizations.
Tradition and convention are deeply rooted and cannot be ignored even though the social system has been transformed by the industrial revolution. Man's roots in the past are firmly implanted and sentiment and custom play
a prominent part in the transition.
Japanese civilization in these times is a compromise of oriential and occidental elements still in a state of flux. About a hundred years ago, when Western European civilization was introduced, there was no objection
-2-then to adopting public measures changing the mode of government, the army, or education. As the feudal economy changed to capitalism with the prog-ress of productive labor, Western European influence spread fast and exten-sively. However, when this culture invaded their private lives, tradition became an obstacle to a complete adoption of such phases as that of archi-tecture.
The extent of the disruption is most noticeable in their home life. Imported innovations were first adopted by the upper class and then by the masses. The result has been a confusion in design and function as the peo-ple sought a way to reconcile their former way of living with western ways. For example, there is a combination of style in one dwelling--a room, occi-dental in content, with chairs, in contrast to the usual matting (tatami) where one may sit on the floor; and the use of the fragile sliding paper
screen in combination with reinforced concrete.
It is my purpose to bring these many elements together in such a way as to respect the Japanese personality with its complex threads of tradition and custom and by utilizing the portion of western design which will best
suit the people's temperament, produce a community center which will appeal to their sense bf comfort and enjoyment. My effort will always be to try to "humanize" design in all its aspects.
Let me here give a background of the project I wish to present. Tokyo, the heart of Japan, has often had painful experiences such as the big earth-quake in 1923 and the destruction brought by World War II. Despite these and many earlier catastrophes, she has always been reborn to go on again, Six hundred fifty thousand families dwell in this congested and con-fused area, having little to do with each other; alike, yet different. The one thing they have in common is a grey loneliness that stems from a lack
of good neighborhood spirit. Therefore, to satisfy their requirements
and to assure their wholesome development in both the city and its environs, we should look not only toward the cultivation of better planning of the environs but eventually a reorganization of the central district.
Because of the overcrowding of the central district the outlying green space has been rapidly built up into residential areas. These beautiful green spaces can ill be spared and their loss is a constant threat to the ever increasing number of mouths that cannot be fed through the lack of agricultural lands. We can no longer ignore its implication and we must take a realistic view in improving our present community facilities.
As one approach, I have taken a community plan in Ichikawa which lies east of Tokyo. Tokyo, with its ten million people now boiling out into
the environs where noise and quiet live side by side and modern science brings with its many benefits a breaking up of the old way of life, grew in a
radiated and circular shape, resembling in some aspects the skeleton of a fish, Many small towns have developed along the traffic line of this radial form, leaving many green spaces between the radial line and the town area. Such a one is Ichikawa.
I propose to build there a community center which will provide shop-ping and recreational facilities, an auditorium, a small hospital, and a junior high school. The center will retain the best customs and traditions inherent in their daily life and incorporate them into the present way of living with its modern scientific techniques.
To assist the reader to get a comprehensive view of the developments in housing legislation I am inserting in Section: II and Section III* the efforts made thus far.
' *Housing and Town Planning in Japan, Ministry of Construction, Japan Housing Corporation, Housing Loan Corporation, Tokyo, 1956.
444
1441~~--4
JI. TOWN PLANNING IN JAPAN
A. General Statement
According to the census taken in October 1955, Japan's population is 89,270,000, which is an increase of about 30,000,000 as compared with that in 1925 thirty years before. The greater part of the increase population concentrated in cities and the urban population became nearly four times what it was in 1925. (Table below). Because of this marked tendency of the population to concentrate in cities, the construction of urban facilities such as roads, parks, water supply and sewerage works, transport facilities and up-to-date housing, which are the re-quirements of modern cities, has failed to keep pace with the growth. The great damage caused by the last war has further added to the delay.
Increase in Population (Unit: 10,000 persons)
Year 1920 1930 1940 1945 1950 1955
Population
Urban Population 1,002 1,536 2,749 2,002 3,120 5,280
Rural Population 4,537 4,851 4,505 5,198 5,200 3,899
Population of Japan 5,539 6,387 7,254 7,200 8,320 8,927
The City Planning Law, which is the basic legislation for town
planning in Japan, is applicable to 1,148 cities at the present time. Plans to modernize these cities have been determined by the Minister of Construction and works are being carried out on the basis of these plans, but large amounts of funds being needed for other enterprises such as rehabilitation and prevention of damage due to typhoons which strike the country every year and for agricultural improvement works c
-5-to ensure food supply, the funds available for -5-town planning works amount to only 3.5 per cent of the total public works expenses.
In view of these circumstances, the Minister of Construction has set up a series of overall work programs, each covering a period of five years, with the twofold aim of promoting the execution of town planning works and of performing them most effectively. The principal objectives of the 1st Five Year Program starting in 1956 are as follows; to promote prompt improvement of transport facilities to meet the sharp increase in the volume of traffic and the increasing size of vehicles; to plan for extensive development of building sites to facilitate implementation of housing measures; to promote improvement of mining and manufacturing districts; to proceed with greater area town planning to establish close connection between the cities, the largest of such plans being the one for the greater national capital district with Metropolitan Tokyo as the nucleus.
According to the provisions of the City Planning Law, the total expenses required for town planning works are borne by the local public bodies which execute the works, although in some cases the national government gives a subsidy to cover part of the expenses (about 50 per cent). On the other hand, these local public bodies are in finan-cial straits, making it necessary for them to adopt some finanfinan-cial measure in order to carry out more town planning works. This has led to the establishment of the town planning tax , to be levied in 1956. The tax will be collected by cities, towns, or villages from the owners of the land or buildings within the town planning areas, according to
the appraised value of the land or buildings. It is expected that
approximately 3,000,000,000 yen (8,400,000 dollars) will be collected
in
1956
for use in town planning works.
So much for a general description of the town planning works in
Japan. Outlines of the works now under execution are given below.
B. Street Traffic
(1)
Increase in Number of Motor-Vehicles and Traffic Congestion
The number of motor-vehicles in Japan increased sharply after the
war, In 1938 there were only 220,000 registered motor-vehicles
through-out Japan (1 car for 320 persons). On
1955,
the number increased
six-fold to 1,370,000 (1 car for
66
persons), 41% of which concentrating in
the six major cities.
This increase in the number of motor-vehicles has brought about
traffic congestion in the large cities. The arterial roads in Tokyo,
Osaka and other large cities have reached the limit of their capacity
to accommodate traffic,
Especially, at some crossings, the stopping cars cannot pass in
one signal cycle-or so called stagnation occurs. In Tokyo,
stagna-tion is seen at crossings with a traffic volume of
20,000 vehicles in
12 hours, and the number of such crossings is increasing.
In the central part of Tokyo the number of vehicles parked on the
roadside is increasing in proportion to the increase in the number of
vehicles. To meet this situation it is necessary to establish a system
-7-than the road*
For some large cities such as Tokyo and Osaka, expressways are being planned. In Tokyo the works have partly been started.
(2) Streets of Small or Medium Sized Cities
A few years ago a law was enacted providing that the gasolene tax
should be used for road improvement works. Since then the national and prefectural roads have been improved in the parts outside the urban
areas, but in cities most of them are still narrow and winding. With the ofject of improving urban roads, a plan to construct town planning
streets for qbout 22,000 km has been decided and about 15.7 per cent of the works have already been completed. However, it will take dozens of years to complete the whole program.
The Japanese parks devastated during the war years have been rehabi-litated. New parks were constructed when land was replotted for war rehabilitation and some former military and other State-owned land were included in the sites for parks. The number and area of parks as of March 1955 were as follows:
No. of cities Total no. of parks Total park area having parks
668
4,479
44,826,610 tsubo
(1 tsubo = 1/3,000 ha). 38.58 sq. ft.
Although these figures exceed the prewar figure, they are still too small for the population. This is particularly the case with large cities,
For instance, the park area per person is 0.31 tsubo in the ward areas of
Tokyo, and 0.34 tsubo in Osaka City.
For securing proper management and improvement of urban parks, the
Urban Park Law was enacted on April 20, 1956, It will add much to improving
the parks in Japanese cities.
D. Water Supply
Since 1890 when the Water Supply Law was enacted, construction of
water supply facilities and their maintenance and administration have been
supervised by the central and prefectural governments.
In the last war, great damage was done to the water supply facilities
by air raids, but by the constant efforts of the people concerned they
have recovered to reach the prewar level. Partly because no extension
works were executed during the war years and partly because the amount of
water used per person has increased with the dissemination of knowledge
of sanitation, in most cities the water supply has come to the limit of
the capacity of the water works system.
Extension and construction works are being rapidly carried out. The
present population served is about 29.9% of the total population, as is
shown in the following tables:
Total
Item
Cities
Towns
Villages
(Average)
Total number of cities,
towns or villages
484
1,853
2,987
5,324
Number of cities, towns
or villages having water
works
385
519
355
1,259
Water supply pervasion
-9-Total
Item
Cities
Towns
Villages
(Average)
Total population
48,830,771
23,657,189
15,881,262
88,369,222
Population supplied 24,349,476 1,719,171 375,539 26,044,186 Water supply
pervasion rate
(%)
49.7
7.3
2.4
39.9
In recent years, with the increase in use of various purposes involv-ing industry, irrigation and power generation, difficulties have risen in connection with the securing of the water source. Supply water must be allocated fairly and reasonably on the multiple purpose use principle. The allocation of water ought to be examined carefully for each river in close relation to the river planning, regional planning and town planning.
E. Sewerage
Sewerage works are regulated by the Sewerage Law and the City Plan-ning Law. The present sewer system is utterly inadequate as compared with that of water supply, because the latter is considere as the first requi-site. However, as Japan is a rainy country and most of her cities are in the low land along the seashore, they are subject to floods, and it is keenly felt that the sewerage facilities must be increased and improved in such communities.
Although the progress is slow for financial and other reasons, construction of sewerage works is increasing year by year.
F. Development of Government Office Center
In most Japanese cities, public buildings such as prefectural office, city office and branch offices of the central government lie scattered in various parts without any definite plan, resulting in inefficiency of office works as well as causing inconvenience to the citizens,
When the Government Office Building and Repairs Law and the City
Planning Law were amended early in 1956, it was made possible to develop a center for various public buildings and the Ministry of Construction has started guidance in this connectionw
G. Zoning
In Japan there are established the following zones and areas:
(1) Use Zones and Use Areas
These are designated usually in urban areas with a view to regulating the use of buildings to be built there. There are Commercial Zone, Resi-dential Zone, Quasi-Industrial Zone, Industrial Zone, Exclusive ResiResi-dential Area, Exclusive Industrial Area, and Special Use Area (Special Industrial Area and Cultural Area),
(2) Fire Zones and Quasi-Fire Zones
As the Japanese cities are for the most part built up with wooden buildings, these zones are established so as to prevent fires, and it is provided that the buildings in these zones must be proof or fire-resisting (wooden construction covered with mortar).
(3) Space Area
In the area designated as a Space Area the buildings must conform to established ratio of building volume to lot and to established building coverage so that the residential environment may be kept good.
(4) Other Zones and Areas
In addition, there are Height Area where the height of buildings is regulated, Scenic Area to maintain the scenic beauty and Green Area to prevent the city from expanding in a haphazard manner,
The number of the designated zones and areas is shown below;
Number of Cities etc. with Designated Zones and Areas, Classified by Population (As of May
Use Zone
Exclusive residential area
Exclusive industrial area
Special Industrial area
Cultural area Fire Zone Quasi-Fire zone Space area Height area Scenic area Green area 6 Major Cities
6
2 1 Pop. over 200,000 293
4
Pop. Pop. Pop.
over over over
100,000
50,000
30,000
55
68
25
9 12 23
3
Towns and Villages 10 2 Total193
303
62 161 205
4 4 11956)
H. Fire-Proof Belt
The Law for promotion of Fire-Proof Building was enacted in 1952 for the purpose of protecting the cities against fires and utilizing the urban areas more intensively.
The Law prescribes that for construction of fire-proof buildings in fire zones a subsidy shall be granted for half the difference between the construction cost of such buildings and that of wooden buildings. Up to the present, fire-proof belts in fire zones have been designated in 63
cities. In 1952 state subsidies amounting to 200,000,000 yen were given for 300 buildings (23,00 tsubo), in 1953 198,000,000 yen for 400 buildings (40,500 tsubo), in 1954 90,000,000 yen for 230 buildings (18,000 tsubo) and in 1955 62,000,000 yen for 250 buildings (13,000 tsubo) to contribute to making cities non-combustible. (1 tsubo=35.50 sq. ft.)
I.War-Damage Reconstruction Works
Shortly after the war, it was determined that city planning should be worked out for the stricken areas and areas connected with them, and the land readjustment works be early carried out for 59,500 ha. of stricken areas.
However, as it became obvious that because of our post-war economic distress the completion of all the works by 1950 as originally scheduled was next to impossible, the execution policy of the works was reexamined in 1949, and it was decided that 28,100 has. which was regarded to be the most urgent out of the 59,500 has. of stricken areas should be the First Land Readjustment Work Areas to be completed by 1954.
Based on this program, land readjustment works were started for the
-13-necessary to extend the execution period of the program by 3 years or so,
J. Urban Disasters
Most Japanese houses, even those in cities, are wooden, and they are
often destroyed in large numbers by fires, earthquakes or floods. In the
cities where much damage was caused, rearrangement of the built-up areas
has been executed so that they may not be subjected to disasters again.
These works done since 1946 are shown below:
City
Cause
Year
Land
Cost
tsubo
yen
Iida
Fire
1947
218,650
90,563,000
Fukui and
6
Neighboring Towns
Earthquake
1948
1,000,000
553,166,000
Ichinoseki
Flood
1948
335,000
210,385,000
Noshiro
Fire
1949
218,385
149,700,000
Atami
Fire
1950
42,200
90,000,000
Matsuzaka
Fire
1951
31,500
28,000,000
Tottori
Fire
1952
540,450
480,000,000
Iwauchi
Fire
1954
417,000
220,000,000
Odate
Fire
1955
13,680
33,856,000
Niigata
Fire
1955
108,000
95,700,000
Fire
1956
121,000
120,739,000
(1 tsubo=35.58 sq.ft.
36$
yen=
one dollar)
K.
Land Replotting
In Japanese cities, the residential areas consist of small building
lots. Therefore, when a road is widened or a park is constructed, many
people who have been living there lose their land and many others find
their land diminished or deformed to be less useful as building lots,
In order to cause such unreasonable results, the land to be used for
a road or a park should be obtained not by purchasing but by reducing the
acreage of all building lots within a large area. For this purpose, land
replotting is executed.
All the building lots for dwellings, public buildings, schools,
markets, etc. are relocat9d, and substitute lots are offered for all
original lots according to their acreage. If need be, irregular or too
small lots are combined and redivided for adjustment.
The replotting and redividing are determined by the Land Readjustment
Council consisting of persons elected from among the land owners, lease
holders, persons of learning, etc.
The project may be executed
by
an
asso-ciation, local public body or government agnecy.
In the past, land
replot-ting projects have greatly facilitated the reconstruction and development
of Japanese cities. The land replotting projects executed hitherto are:
Executed by government
Executed by
Total
agency or public-body
association
No. of projects
494
1,089
1,583
Area
66,500 ha
36,600 ha
103 ,100 ha
l
ha=24.7 acre
L. Improvement of Greater National Capital District
Nearly 300,000 people annually flow into Tokyo, constituting about
30% of the population increase for all Japan.
In Tokyo, as it is economically impossible to improve urban facilities
in proportion to this concentration of population, there are seen various
evils of an excessively large city, such as traffic congestion, housing
shortage and deterioration of environment. As a means to overcome these
y
K, it
4
evils, the Greater National Capital District Improvement Law was enacted in the last Diet Session.
This Law prescribes that the Greater National Capital District should consist of three areas divided by concentric circles, that in order to prevent the central built-up area from further expanding, a green belt about 10 km wide should be set up around it, and that cities outside the belt should be developed as the satellite cities.
M. Large Scale Development of Building Lots
The concentration of population in large cities is becoming more and more conspicuous and, if let alone, this would naturally cause development of slums in the interiors of the cities and irregular development of
unhealthful and inefficient urban districts around the cities proper. Thus it has become necessary to develop healthful urban districts in the environs of the large cities. The Japan Housing Corporation established
in 1955 and the administrative agencies concerned are to execute housing estate development projects by means of land replotting.
With regard to the location and scale of the estates to be developed, there have been designated 5 such estates in the Tokyo-Yokohama Area, 5 in the Osaka-Kobe Area, 2 in the Nagoya Area and 3 in Northern Kyushu--15 estates in all, each 100 ha or so,
III. THE HOUSING ACT IN JAPAN
A. Housing Situation
Owing to the fact that most of the houses in Japan are built of wood, the damage caused by air raids during the last war was appalingly severe. In 1945, out of the estimated total of 14,000,000 housing units for the whole country, 2,100,000 units were lost through war damage. Furthermore
-16-550,000 units were compulsorily torn down as a protection against air
raids. Thus, as a result of bombing and the anti=air raid measure of tearing down houses, 18.9 per cent of the total number of dwellings were lost, and in the cities about 41 per cent of the total housing units were lost. It is estimated that before the war the number of housing units annually built averaged 320,000, but during the war years there was
practically no new supply of housing. Between 1937 and 1945 there devel-oped an estimated housing shortage of about 1,180,000 units.
With the termination of hostilities, a large number of civilians and service men were repatriated from abroad. By May 1950 their number had reached approximately 6,300,000, of whom 3,150,000 were civilians (about
830,000
households). The repatriates constituted 8.3 per cent of Japantstotal population in 1948.
In a word, there developed a tremendous housing shortage of about
3,870,000 units attributable to the war directly or indirectly. During
the ten years following the war, 4,239,147 units have been built as a result of Japants economic rehabilitation and the efforts of her people, and the housing situation is improving a little. However, when compared with the food and clothing conditions which have already reached their prewar levely, the housing situation still constitutes an unsolved problem.
As of April 1952, the housing shortage was estimated at 3,160,000 units. As against this, about 3,870,000 units were built by March 1955 through housing construction centering around the First Public Operated Housing Program which started in fiscal year 1952. In the meantime, fresh housing need developed as a result of the increase in population, the loss of houses in disasters, etc. According to the results of the Housing Conditions Survey conducted in August 1955, the housing shortage as of the
same date was 2,708,000 units. A breakdown of the figure is as follows: number of families living in non-dwellings 142,000; families living with other families 670,000; those living in overcrowded space 770,000; those living in unsafe superannuated houses 1,126,000. In addition, it is esti-mated that there is an annual increase of about 250,000 units in the housing need, caused by population increase and destruction of houses by disasters,
etc.
The number of "tatami"l (mats) per person indicates one aspedt of the housing condition. In 1941, before the war, it was
3.8
(Housing Survey in the Six Major Cities), while the postwar figures are: 1948----3.4 (Housing Survey); 1950----3.4 (National Census); 1953----3.3 (Housing Statistical Survey). These figures show that there has bee no improvement in this aspect of the housing situation.With regard to the condition of the existing houses, the results of the Housing Conditions Survey of 1955 show that 25 per cent of the country's dwellings are in need of repair and that 2.5 per cent are unsafe or beyond repair. In this aspect too, the seriousness of the housing situation is manifest.
The number of dwelling units constructed showed an annual increase between the years 1945 and 1948, but in 1949 it decreased sharply to about half the number constructed the year before, and continued to decrease gradually until it hit the bottom in 1951. From 1952 it began to rise, but again in 1954 there was a slight decrease. In 1955 the Government decided to adopt housing measures as one of its major policies and to actively
implement them, from which fact a brighter future is anticipated for housing construction.
dwel-lings, the situation in urban areas was as follows in 1941: owner occupied dwellings 22.3, per cent, supplied housing 1.8 per cent, rental housing 75.
9
per cent. In other words, before the percentage of rental housing was overwhelmingly large. On the other hand, after the war, the situation was reversed and the percentage of the owner-occupied dwellings became conspic-uous. The figures for 1948 were: owner-occupied dwellings 52.5 per cent, supplied housing 8.5 per cent, rental housing 39 per cent. The HousingConditions Survey of 1953 revealed that this trend had become even more marked, the data being as follows: owner occupied dwellings 63 per cent, supplied housing 8 per cent, rental housing 29 per cent. This fact plainly indicates the stagnant status of rental housing construction and means that the housing problem is more particularly concerned with the low-income people- who are not able to build their homes for themselves. In these circumstances, what needs to be done in order to solve the present housing problem is to build a large number of housing by means of financial aid from the Government, such as public-operated housing, housing built with loans from the Housing Loan Corporation and Japan Housing Corporation housing, and at the same time to promote private housing construction.
B. Public-Operated Housing
When the last war ended, there were a vast number of people who were unable to buy homes for themselves or whose rent-paying capacity had been drastically lowered, as a result of sudden changes in economic conditions which the war had brought about. It was apparent that the only way in which low rent housing could be made available to these low-income people
in dire need of housing was through the State's financial aid. Accordingly the Government took up housing reconstruction as one of the public works and from 1945 began to grant a subsidy to local public bodies to cover
about one-half of the construction cost. In 1951 it became necessary to add further impetus to this system of Government subsidized housing and to re-examine it to make it rational and put it on a long-range planning
basis, and the Public Operated Housing Law was enacted that year.
The construction of public-operated housing started in 1945, and by the enforcement of the Public-Operated Housing Law in 1951 long-range planning was adopted for the program in respect to both the construction and management phases. The 2nd "Public-Operated Housing Construction Three Year Program" based on the above-mentioned Law, is now under execution. Up to March 1956, 497,307 units had been built.
-20-Work
Clas-sif
icat ion
Type of
Structure
19451946
1947
Emergency housing
Wooden
Simple
f
ire-resisting
(1 story)
Simple
fire-resisting
(
2 stories)
Fire-proof
25,815
30,840
32,957
Class A
Class B*
Class
A
Class B
Class A
Class B*
Class A
Class B*
44
138 48 1,725Sub-Total
Existing buildings
converted into housing
Total
Wooden
Simple
fire-resisting (1 story)
Special type
fire-proof
42,959 25,815 30,932 34,820 38,171 21,790 8,080 3,23281,130
47,605
39,012
38,052
1,200
3,084
4,800
1,200
3,084
4,800
Grand Total
81,130
48,805
42,096
42,852
Notes: The asterisk
(*)
denotes housing built for those low-income
people whose monthly income is 16,000 yean or less.
(s)
denotes housing for small families
42,959
1948
0 CdCd M4Sub-Total
1949
1950
1951
21,732
21,035
14,212
5,206
303
382
960
1952
1953
1954
12,993
22,964
22,067
5,163
9,358
7,690
727
1,814
1,987
931
1,127
938
2,859
24
6,226
6,944
42
1955
Grand
Total
42,959
16,866
10,440
7,727
1,241
(s)
4,175
221,481
37,857
12,553
7,474
4,712
23,203
66
2,315
4,010
5,251
3,565
48
8,533
200
(s)
8,428
2,027
396
499
24,429
26,005
25,810
25,379
50,026
48,676
49,017
383,868
1,253
2,082
74,608
25,682
28,087
25,810
25,379
50,026
48,676
49,017
458,476
880
3,996
1,626
7,848
7,704
3,270
1,642
36,050
40
1,060
1,361
150
?,,461
170
320
880
3,996
1,626
7,998
7,914
4,330
3,003
38,831
26,562
32,083
27,436
33,377
57,940
53,006
52,020
497,307
37,132
1,143
-22-Public operated housing means housing which a local public body (prefecture, city, town or village) builds with a State subsidy and rents to house needing low-income people at a low rent. The enterpriser is always a local public body.
There are two types of public-operated housing: Class A and Class B. Class A is for persons whose monthly income minus 1,000 yen for each dependent is between
6
and 15 times the rent, provided the amount does not exceed 32,000 yen. Class B is for low-income persons whose monthly income minus 1,000 yen for each dependent is not more than 16,000 yen or who havelost their homes in a disaster.
Construction of public-operated housing constitutes the core of the Japanese housing policy. For planned construction of this type of housing, it was decided that the Minister of Construction should prepare a Public-Operated Housing Construction Three Year Program for each three year period beginning in 1952, and when it is accepted at the Cabinet meeting, present
it before the Diet for approval. On the basis of the approved Three Year Program, each prefecture works out its own plan, and the cities, towns and villages respectively work out their own plans according to the prefectural plan. During the period of the 2nd Three Year Program now under execution,
155,000 units of public-operated housing are to be constructed.
For the construction of Class A public-operated housing, the State subsidy given is one-half of the construction cost, and for that of Class B housing, it is two-thirds. Also, according to the financial circumstan-ces of the enterpriser, about two-thirds of the money to be borne by the enterpriser is loaned by the central government. No State subsidy is
given for the excess amount over the standard construction cost established
(except in Hokkaido)is:
Wooden (10 tsubo: 351,000 yen
One-storied simple fire-resisting (10 tsubo): 430,000 yen Two-storied simple fire-resisting (12 tsubo): 591,000 yen
4-5 storied fire-proof (12 tsubo): 726,000 yen
(10 tsubo=355.$ sq. ft.)
(365 yen=one dollar)
It is provided in the Public-Operated Housing Law that the limit of the rent of the public-operated housing should be an amount equivalent to the total of (A) and (B) given below divided into twelve: (A) the amount
of amortization computed on the assumption that the construction cost (minus the state subsidy) is repaid annually in equal amounts with an interest.of not more than 6 per cent per annum over a period equivalent to the durable years plus (B) the amount of expenses for repairs, manage-ment and damage insurance.
The enterpriser determines the rent within this limit. The Law fixes the durable years as follows:
Wooden building: 20 years
One-storied simple fire-resisting building: 35 years Two-storied simple fire-resisting building: 45 years Fire-proof building: 70 years
In calculation, the expenses for land are refunded over a 70-year period.
The monthly rent thus computed is usually between 1,000 yen and 2,600 yen.
The rent being low, there are yearly very many applicants for public-operated housing. For the 1,669 units of public-public-operated housing in
-24-Tokyo for which applications were invited in January 1956, 64,125 families
or 38 times as many applied. The Law provides that the selection should be
made on a fair basis by referring to the actual state of each applicant's housing need, and in accordance with the standards established by Cabinet Order and the provisions of the enterpriser's rebulations. However, those whose housing need has been caused by a disaster or slum clearance may be
preferentially admitted.
In regard to the quality of public-operated housing, those built
before 1948 were makeshift buildings of very inferior quality. Since then, however, partly through substantial raising of the unit construction cost and partly through positive techinical guidance on the part of the Ministry
of Construction---for instance, making housing incombustible by employing various kinds of fire-proof and fire-resisting structures---the quality of the housing has yearly improved. Also, with the provision of more and better common facilities, the environment is being improved in spite of the small housing.
C. HLC Housing
The Housing Loan Corporation was established in 1950 with Government invested funds to cope with the acute postwar housing shortage, and it advances housing funds on long terms and at a low rate of interest.
Financing various kinds of housing construction, it is playing an important role in carrying out Japants housing policies,
At the outset, the business of the Corporation was restricted to exstending loans to those who had part of the funds for building houses for their own use and to the housing associations or similar agencies which, established with funds invested by a prefecture, city, etc., construct and
oerate rental housing. The annual interest was 5.5% and the period of repayment 18-35 years. In 1953, when the Industrial Workers' Housing Fund Financing Law was enacted, it was also provided that the Corporation should loan out funds to industrialists intending to construct housing for their
employees, at an interest rate of
6.5%
per annum, In 1954 it was further stipulated that the funds be loaned out also (1) for buying and developing land by a prevecture, city or housing association intending to develop building sites which are now in short supply, (2) with a view to improving the rate of effective use of urban land, for construction of stores and offices which constitute the first floor of multi-storied rental apartment houses, and (3) for construction on an estate by a prefecture, city or housing association of housing to be sold on monthly instalments, In 1955, the scope of financing was enlarged again to cover loans for the extension of existing dwellings.Also, in order to promote loaning out of housing funds by financial institutions, the Housing Finance Insurance Law was enacted. This Law provides that the Corporation guarantee 80% of the housing funds lent by financial institutions if they should not be collected.
During the years between 1950 and 1955, 300,000 units of housing were constructed and 2,7000,000 square meters of building lots were
developed through financing by the Corporation. The total amount of loans exceeded 100,000,000,000 yen. The financing plan for 1956 involves
financing for 77,000 units in total of owner-occupied housing, rental
housing, industrial workerst housing and extension, and buying and develop-ing of 1,300,000 square meters of builddevelop-ing lots.
D. Japan Housing Corporation Housing.
-26-in the cha-26-in of the Government's hous-26-ing policies for reliev-26-ing the hous-26-ing shortage.
The most effective measure for checking large cities from growing too big is to develop statellite cities around them and construct there housing estates. To attain this purpose it is essential to secure extensive
housing supply without being restricted by the division of the local admin-istrative areas and also to develop building lots by the replotting of land.
A new system of housing is also required for meeting the increasing
demand of housing for wage earners. The Japan Housing Corporation was established to meet these requirements.
The functions of the Corporation are:
1. Construction and management of rental housing and construction and
sale of housing for sale.
2. Construction of facilities for the convenience of the occupants (stores, public bath house, etc.) and renting or selling thereof.
3.
Execution of land replotting projects and renting or selling ofbuilding lots thus developed.
4.
Other works incidental to housing construction.Housing Built b Japan Housing Corporation
The Japan Housing Corporation started its activities with a target of constructing 20,000 units (rental housing: 10,000 units; housing for sale; 10,000) in various parts of the contry by the end of March 1956.
All the works have been started. Some were already completed in April
and most of them are to be completed in the autumn.
Construction of additional 23,000 units (rental housing: 12,000 units; housing for sale: 11,000 units) is scheduled for fiscal year 1956 (April 1956-March 1957) and efforts are being made for securing the land
for the building sites. In case of a large housing estate, shops, nursery, childrents playground, etc. are constructed on the estate and are sold or rented for the benefit of the occupants. (In the 1956 program, 8,000 tsubb of land are allocated as the sites for such facilities.) Extension or construction of a primary school is also necessary when the estate is very large. In this connection, a concrete plan is being worked out in coneert with the interested authorities.
Adequate provision of these facilities ought to be and will be a fea-ture of the Corporation's housing.
Concerning the type and structure of the Corporation's housing, most of the buildings are 4 or 5 storied fire-proof apartment houses for mar-ried persons. According to the locality, however, multi-stomar-ried apart-ment houses provided with elevators or one- or two-storied terrace houses of simple fire-resisting structure, or, if necessary, apartment houses whose first floor is used for stores, or apartment houses for bachelors are also built.
The rent is 4,200 yen in case the floor area is about 13 tsubo, and the qualifications for the occupant are that he has a monthly income of
25,000 yen (including tac) or more. In Japan today a person with this
much income belongs to the middle or higher brackets of the wage-earners, and there is a general opinion that considering the income distribution of the house needing people the Corporation should build housing of a rent which people of somewhat lover brackets can afford to pay.
The housing built and sold by the Corporation has the following
features in contrast with other housingbuilt for sale (such as those built
1. No down payment is needed;
2. Sold on long term instalments (20 years); and
3. The buyer or the enterpriser may rent or sell the bought housing
to his employees.
* Development of Building Sites by the Housing Corporation
Land development by the Japan Housing Corporation aims at securing sites for housing estates the Corporation constructs and at supplying on a large scale sites for those who need lots. It may be said that this is a busi-ness which constitutes the foundation for developing new urban districts as satelite cities around the cities where the housing shortage is acute. The development is usually executed by means of a land replotting project.
The new urban districts will be fully provided with public facilities such as roads, sewage works, parks and green zones. The main roads will be paved and planted with trees. Regarding the sewage works, sewerages will be laid throughout the districts and will be connected with the main pipes. More than
5
per cent of the total area developed will be used for parks. Inshort, every effort will be made to produce good environment.
On this principle, 3,000,000 tsubo of land have been designated as the areas to be developed under the First Phase Project (1955 - 1957), and steps
are being taken for buying and replotting the land.*
* Reprinted from Housing and Town Planning in Japan, Ministry of Construction, Japan Housing Corporation, Housing Loan Corporation, Tokyo, 1956
I
-30-IV. ICHIKAWA, CHIBA
Until the end of the nineteenth century, Ichikawa had been a small
village, 13 miles to the east of Tokyo, on the road to Chiba. Industry
and commerce were expanding rapidly in Tokyo. Workers from Tokyo,
because of its proximity, surged into this peaceful village and used
the two new railroads as a convenient means of transportation. The
in-flux of people did not benefit the village proportionately. They were
neither contributing much as taxpayers nor were they supporting the
village by trading there. Ichikawa became a satellite town, but with
a population of 120,000 it should not any longer continue as a "bedroom"
town. Recognition of this town's growth was acknowledged in the recently
enacted Greater National Capital District Improvement Law which has made
provisions for consolidating the town eventually as a residential zone of
Tokyo.
Climate
The range of climate is considerable, extending from a humid
subtropi-cal type to a humid continental type. Seasonal differences in temperature
are accentuated by the nearness of the Japanese Islands to the Asiatic
mainland and by their position in the track of monsoons. During the summer,
warm, moist air passes over Japan towards the continent, and oceanic winds
blow from the south or southeast. In winter, cold dry air passes from
high-pressure areas on the mainland across Japan to the warmer Pacific Ocean, so
that prevailing winter winds reach Japan from the northwest.
Rainfall and Wind
There are three wet seasons in Japan: the first, from the middle of
April to the beginning of May; the second, from the middle of June to the
beginning of July; and the third, from early mid July until the second half
the four months from November to February, inclusive, only about 18,/o of the whole rain for the year falls. But Japan is emphatically a wet country so far as quantity of rainfall is concerned, the average for the whole coun-try being 62 inches per annum. Still there are about four sunny days for every three on which rain or snow falls, the actual figures being 150 days of snow or rain and 215 days of sunshine.
During the cold season, which begins in October and ends in April, the prevailing northerly and westerly winds develop considerable strength. But during the warm season, from May to September, the prevailing winds are light breezes varying from southeastin southwest according to locality.
A calamitous atmospheric feature is the periodical arrival of storms called
"typhoons." Their season is from June to October, September being generally the month when they are most frequent. But they occur in other months also, and develop a velocity of 5 to
75
miles an hour. It is particularly unfor-tunate that September should be the season of greatest typhoon frequency, for the earlier varieties of rice flower in that month, and heavy storms do much damage not only to crops and property but endangers lives.*2Cfc 4tF FEQ --- - 10* Sp oo) 147/AN OC 32 F I A G R A M O F C L I M AT E
HUMIDITY, TEMPERATURE IN TOKYO G NEW YORK
OL SUtNAL--. y .i.mate. Ar4deotwre. pab
M J FEB JAN DEC NOV W 2 -RAIN JUL
MILLI METER OF RAIN/MONTH
E
MAY
MM
0 ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' Q
JAN F. M. A. M. JUN J AUG S 0 N DEC
CLIMATE CONDITON 5
Ibid, Vol i p. to 17.
TOKYO
-32-Population
In the census taken in October of 1955, the population of Ichikawa had reached 120,706. In comparison with the census of 1934, the number of families had increased 2.63 times;the total population, 2.51 times; and the density of population, 2.32 times. These figures show that this
town has every promise of increasing in the coming years. (see Ill 4,os 4.06)
Year Population Density
People/sg.km 1934 40,869 1,781 1936 45,426 1,979 1938 48,696 2,122 1940 58,059 2,530 1942 70,083 3,054 1944 69,711 3,038 1946 84,855 3,697 1948 95,091 4,o4o 1950 102,506 3,097 1955 120,706 ---Average Families of persons in family 4.8 8,437
4.9
99,256
4.8 10,190 5.0 11,702 4.8 14,7054.4
15,198
4.6
18,567
4.6 20,7104.6
22,199
EconomyAs a satellite town, Ichikawa's economy is supported mainly by those in services and industry. Farming and light industry occupy the natives of this town but do not affect the townts economy too strongly. A study of the fol-lowing tables will reveal the distribution of workers in Ichikawa as compared with Japan as a whole:
Ce.-5L.S ifIK, 1k-1-a-- 92. P 6.
Ichikawa
Japan
Agricultural Workers
M111.08%
48.02%
Service Workers
n
45.90%
30.21%
Industry
0
43.02%
21.87%
These figures show clearly that this town has changed more and more from
an agricultural village to a residential type of town. About 10% of the
families work in rice fields and orchards--a percentage too small for the
consumption of the community. In comparison with the usual average under
cultivation in Japan, Ichikawa's farmers are able to produce only 56%.
They must therefore confine their produce to fruits and vegetables which
bring a good price in Tokyo rather than spend their time on the less
pro-fitable cultivation of rice. (Ibid p.11)
Mercantile business in this town suffers because the majority of the
population purchase their needs in Tokyo. This fact has an injurious effect
on the economy of a satellite town. Generally speaking, in Japan shops cater
to around 17 families apiece. Competition among shopkeepers is so great that
no one can make much of a profit. In contrast, in England a shop caters to
30 families; in Tokyo, 15 families. Therefore 80% of the shops do not hire
outside help and their gross income during a month is,
on the average, only
two hundred dollars. (Bungei Shunjyu, Sept. 1956)
In Ichikawa 1440 shops are centered around seven railroad stations,
a normal average as compared with other towns. Commuters as well as many -of
the other inhabitants purchase their wants in Tokyo instead of patronizing
-34-their home town shops. This problem became so serious not only in Ichikawa
but in other satellite towns that an investigation was launched to discover
the reason for the lack of patronage. These questionnaires were sent out
in 1951 in the form of cards,which were sent to 2,362 families, inquiring
where goods were purchased and why they were purchased elsewhere. The
results of the questionnaire are shown below:*
Occupant
Salaried Person
(1270)
Merchant and
Factory Worker
(500)Others
Place of
Emloyment
Ichikawa (289)
Tokyo
(867)
Others
114)
Ichikawa
Ichikawa
Shopping Place
Ichikawa
Tokyo
172 (59.5%) 112 38.7%)
254 (28%)
604
71%)
39
(34.2%
65 57.1%)
258 (51.6%)
Else-( 1.8%)
9 1%)
10 8.7%)
22.9 (45.8%) 13 (2.6%)
345 (58.3%)
180 (30.4%)
67
(11.33%)
(592)
Total: 2362
1068 (45.2%)
*Municipal Census (1952), Ichikawa p. 82
To
- r/
Working Place
Ichikawa
Tokyo
1190 (50.3%)
(4.5%)
Others
The graph above shows the usual tendency of the pulling power of a big
shopping center and obviously is supported by huge capital.
Seventy-one
percent
of the people that always work in Tokyo and thirty-eight percent
of the people working in Ichikawa, shop in Tokyo. The shops in Ichikawa
are supported by
barely
45.2% of the residents there.
.
The following reasons were given for the preference for shopping in Tokyo: (1) prices in Tokyo are cheaper; (2) there are many attractive department stores, which are conveniently located near the terminals; and
a
(3) a better selection could be made through/variety of stores carrying
the same goods. The conclusion was drawn that better facilities should be provided to induce people to buy in the environs.
Education
The development of education in Japan after the Restoration of 1868 can best be understood if it is realized that education was regarded as an instrument of national policy, directed towards the dual objective of spread-ing Western learnspread-ing while preservspread-ing as far as possible those elements of national strength which resided in the native culture.
At the present time, the significant statistics on education are as
follows:*
Type of School Age Percentage Percentage
of Attendance Students by Population
Kindergarten 3-5 4.2%- 0.3%
Elementary School 6-11 99.5% 13.5%
Junior High School 12-14 99.0% 6.1%
Senior High School 15-17
57.5%
2.6%College & University 18-21 7.6% 0.53%
*Standard of Architectural Vol. 3, p 146, 1951
Design, Institute of Architecture in Japan,
Official statistics show school attendance during the compulsory period in Elementary grades to be 99.5%; and in Junior High School, 99.,0%. This rate having been maintained for more than a decade, the literacy rate is now
-36-In Ichikawa there are many types of schools and great opportunity for study as the following statistics on education as of October, 1951, show:*
Type of School Number of Numbers of Students Schools
Kindergarten
5
650
Elementary School 10 13,732
Junior High School 10 6,175
Senior High School 8 3,105
Colleges and University
5
1,141*Municipal Census (1952), Ichikawa, p. 45ff.
The number of students mentioned above include those from adjacent villages and towns. ( Se.e.
Il1.
4-.oq 4..o )Community Facilities
One of the greatest causes which have obstructed the development of community facilities was the economic change brought by inflation with its attendant lowering of the standard of living. In Japan the Government pro-vided laws on the cultural and educational level to guide the citizen's activity, but neither the Government nor the local authorities could afford to investigate community facilities.
Much housing construction is still going on in neighborhood units of
10,000 persons; and, while the funds for community facilities are not yet
forthcoming, the plans for them exist on paper, ready to execute.
In Ichikawa, due to the limited financial condition, only a few public 4.07 buildings have been completed--a library, and a recreation park (see Ill. map
for Park and forest). The auditoriumof the Junior High School is rented from time to time when a public meeting place is needed.
and recreational activities of the community is apparent. At present those interested in occupying their leisure time for instruction in the tea ceremony, flower arrangement, Japanese calligraphy, dancing and home cooking--the so-called traditional cultural background for every housewife and unmarried woman--must go for private instruction to a teacher's house. The men must use the playground of the school to play baseball or find a stream in which to fish. Since no public facilities have been provided, the people try to find for themselves any available places to spend their leisure time.
Currently there are in Ichikawa five movie theaters.
The public library gives free access to 9000 volumes. Lovers of the arts have organized to advance cultural purposes and are eagerly awaiting a community facility to enable them to promote such worthy projects as music, the tea ceremony, flower arrangement and painting.
Religion
There are many Buddist temples and Shinto shrines scattered through the area. A playground and green space is usually found adjacent to these
4.10
sacred structures. (See Ill. marked Locatior-9f religious structures,)
Traffic
The people of Ichikawa depend for transportation mainly upon the rail-road and the bus. At the seven stations in Ichikawa the morning and evening rush is comparable to the American commuters' daily routine. A study of the passengers indicates that 61%, or
63,788
persons, use commuters' tickets, Busses are utilized for short distance traveling, and connect neighboring4..11t
towns and villages. (See Ill. marked Bus Route.)
The main roads are eight and fifteen meters wide but are not finished for the most part. In the future, should traffic increase, these roads
-38-will not be adequate. The new roads -38-will need to be wider and finished in
4-. 0
asphalt or concrete. (See Ill. Map of Land Use in Ichikawa and Ill. of 4.C11
4.r
t
A TYPICAL GROUP OF SHOPS NEAR A STATION IN ICHIKAWA
SHOWING THE NARROW SCALE OF A SBDFPING AREA AS IT EXISTS NOW
li: A
I
u
A T
,0A D E R K sI
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mMfSM.
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-m DItAl rawslOW AY-SOCA l IvipW
V
Ii
lop -F p4 p p4 \ 0 3H -. *
sz
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